As the Ryder Cup inches closer and the intrigue intensifies, it’s conceivable that the most important piece of the American puzzle is hiding in plain sight.
Bryson DeChambeau.
Despite his unimpressive record in two previous Ryder Cup appearances – 2-3-1 – DeChambeau has the combustible capability to be captain Keegan Bradley’s not-so-secret weapon.
Need a guy who can make birdies in bunches?
Check.
Need someone to offer shock and awe?
Check.
Need someone to be the fist-pumping, chest-heaving Uncle Sam?
Bryson’s your guy.
While the American team starts with Scottie Scheffler, who happens to be the best player in the world, DeChambeau can be the pepper to Scheffler’s salt and the U.S. team wants all the advantages it can muster.
The Americans need someone with a personality as big as the moment. As good as Scheffler and Xander Schauffele may be, they don’t go over the top like DeChambeau is capable of doing. He will embrace the theatrics that are part of the Ryder Cup, something Bradley is likely to relish given his own emotional investment.
Not everyone likes the idea of DeChambeau being on the U.S. team because he left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf but he belongs, just as Brooks Koepka did two years ago. It’s good that the Ryder Cup can transcend the game’s great divide and no player is likely to play the red, white and blue card better than DeChambeau.
Where DeChambeau is mistaken is his feeling that the PGA Tour should have allowed him to play in the Procore Championship this week in Napa, California, where 10 of his 11 teammates are teeing it up in what feels like a Ryder Cup prep session. DeChambeau was among the players who filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour three years ago before eventually withdrawing from the case.
Still, DeChambeau is in Napa this week for a team dinner and to be part of something bigger than himself.
Considering DeChambeau’s talent and his evolution as a player, it will be hard for Bradley to sit him for more than one session.
He’s already playing the Ryder Cup game.
In a video after European captain Luke Donald filled out his roster with his six picks, DeChambeau suggested the visiting team won’t be able to fully prepare for what’s coming at Bethpage Black.
“Whatever expectation they should have, they should double it. I don’t think they’re ready for it,” DeChambeau said.
This is on top of his earlier comments promising a “tsunami” of crowd support later this month on Long Island, adding that the Americans are tired of losing.
Last weekend, DeChambeau turned up at the Walker Cup at Cypress Point, where he spoke to the U.S. team that ultimately won a lopsided victory over Great Britain & Ireland. He spent time in the team room and delivered a message.
“It’s a similar inspiration our captain has provided us for the Ryder Cup this year and it’s bringing your ego. Be who you know you are,” DeChambeau told the team according to a short video he did with the USGA.
The message is on brand for DeChambeau who, as much as any player in the game, follows his own path. So much for the “check your egos at the door” concept.
DeChambeau isn’t alone stoking the Ryder Cup flame. Prior to the start of the Walker Cup, Rory McIlroy sent a short video to the European team with a simple message, according to Golf Channel:
“Please beat them because I know we’re going to beat them at Bethpage,” McIlroy told the team.
It will be interesting to see how Bradley slots DeChambeau into the U.S. lineup. In the American flameout in Paris in 2018, DeChambeau went 0-3, losing foursomes matches when paired with Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods before losing a singles match to Alex Norén.
At Whistling Straits four years ago, DeChambeau played two four-ball matches with Scottie Scheffler, winning one and tying another before beating Sergio García in singles.
Scheffler seems more likely to play with Russell Henley this year, meaning DeChambeau will probably have a fourth different partner in the matches. When Jim Furyk was captain in Paris, DeChambeau did not play four-balls, in which his ability to make birdies would seem to be maximized.
Considering DeChambeau’s talent and his evolution as a player, it will be hard for Bradley to sit him for more than one session. It’s not a stretch to see DeChambeau and Ryder Cup rookie Ben Griffin being paired together at least once.
Imagine the scene if Bradley chooses to send DeChambeau first off on Friday morning in front of the thousands wrapping around the first tee at Bethpage Black. It could be the perfect meeting of a man and the moment.